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Update:
To hear the interview with Ron Sims, King County Executive, about this
topic click
here. |
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To see
what some of the public is saying, click
here. |
photo courtesy of Mike
Kane, Seattle PI |
"Damning Report" released about
King County animal shelters
THE REPORT
Dogs and cats are not
receiving the basic animal care, including food, water and vaccinations
at King County animal shelters, says a report created by consultant,
Nathan Winograd, former operations director for the San Francisco SPCA
and a national advocate for reducing animal euthanasia. County
Council reacted with shock and anger to the report that they had hired
Winograd to produce. A thorough overhaul of the animal
control operation will be necessary to raise the standards expected by
the Council. |
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Winograd had arrived unexpectedly two weeks before
anticipated to see the shelter on a "typical" day. What he
reported was that animals may have been going over 24 hours,
and possibly two full days without care. This
is an extremely frightening possibility and absolutely
unacceptable. There is no reason that would justify this in
any way.
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The report also stated
that many of the issues and problems he was there to investigate were
not new, and in fact have been the same ones that they have received
complaints about for nearly 10 years. “I have often discovered
animals in filthy conditions, without proper food, or forgotten for days
in a back room or out of the way cage” was a quote stated in the report
dating back to 1998 by a King County Animal Control Veterinarian.
Is this
due to lack of protocol; or bad management? The
optimistic answer would be that both of these things are fixable. |
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Mooie, a 4 month old
puppy was immersed in concentrated ammonia which burned 98% of her body |
MOOIE
CASE
A specific abuse case from 2006 that was mentioned in the report was a devastating one
that Pasado's is all too familiar with. Mooie was a 4 month old
puppy that was immersed in concentrated ammonia which burned 98% of her
body. Read her story
here.
The most humane thing to do was to end Mooie's suffering by euthanizing
her. Pasado's had issued a $10,000 reward for information leading
to the arrest, prosecution, and conviction of the person(s) responsible
for immersing a four-month-old puppy in the chemical. |
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Although intentional
animal cruelty is a Felony in Washington State, according to Pasado’s
sources, King County Animal Control and the Federal Way Police
Department cremated the body of the puppy before a necropsy (animal
autopsy) or toxicology tests could be conducted. “The law enforcement
entities, responsible for investigating such an egregious crime, simply
threw away the evidence,” said (in 2006) Larry Brothers,
Humane Investigator for Pasado’s Safe Haven. “Pasado’s passed the third animal cruelty law in
three years in Washington State this last legislative session. What good
are the laws if the investigators, paid to do their job, choose not to
use them?" Since then, Pasado's has passed another law
elevating the penalty for
animals abandonment from a misdemeanor to a gross misdemeanor. |
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POSITIVE CHANGE |
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Of course
PSH is interested in this report, since our number one priority is the
animals. It is a shame how the “people problems and concerns” often
keep the animals from receiving the top level care that they so
deserve. Can we find a way to step above the human politics and put our
energy toward bettering the lives of the animals? Hopefully, the
awareness that has been raised by this report will result in the
resources needed and evoke positive change so that our animal welfare
continues to improve. |
The first priority should be to remove any staff or management that are
not honestly motivated by a passion for animal welfare. Replace
those absent of this motivation with people who strive to
provide the animals with
the best environment and care
possible.
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Funding should be
focused on establishing a
much higher level of care to
the animals in the shelter. One suggestion may be to create a staff
position in which that
person would work as a liaison to specialized rescue groups .
This would help to reduce numbers in the
shelter by resourcing outside rescues.
The person in this position would also work to increase adopt ability
of the animals in the shelter. Training, socialization and time with
the animals would help along with advertisement and public relations.
Creating a happier, healthier environment in the shelter would also work
as a positive draw to the public to visit and hopefully adopt a pet.
More adoptions equals less euthanasia. Less
euthanasia is in turn motivating to the staff, generating a more
positive work environment equals better work output.
There is no excuse for an animal going
days let alone a day without proper care and attention.
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THE
GOOD NEWS |
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Pasado's and King
County Animal Control at a cruelty investigation |
The good news is that in
any negative situation there is opportunity for change and improvement.
Bottom line is that animals who end up in shelters need not suffer any
more and animals that are being abused and neglected in our communities
must absolutely be given a voice and removed from their horrible
situations.
As far as the shelters go,
KCAC
could possibly “redeem” themselves if they re-vamp the care and protocol
in the shelter along with developing a management plan which follows
what Nathan Winograd, or San Francisco’s model recommends…. |
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Where animal cruelty
cases are concerned, Pasado’s is proud to continue to develop a stronger
working relationship with KCAC officers. We are working together
to establish quicker and more efficient methods of response to cruelty
and neglect cases.
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Kim K, Pasado's Humane
Investigator, who works side by side in the field investigating
cruelty cases, said the following: "Pasado's
strives to facilitate an open and efficient working relationship
with Animal Control officers throughout the Pacific Northwest. I
feel that this cooperation and corroboration is absolutely
imperative when working with animal cruelty and neglect. I believe
that if we all work together, we can make a greater difference with
a quicker response time. I have had a very positive experience
working with King County Animal Control Officers. I look forward to
continuing to build this relationship, help more animals and work
together to put an end to animal abuse."
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To read the report click
here.
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